INTERVIEW: NHRI director calls for more flu preparations

Saying it may be impossible to keep H7N9 avian influenza out of Taiwan due to frequent cross-strait contact, Su Ih-jen, director of the National Health Research Institutes’ National Institute of Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology, warned in an interview earlier this month with the ‘Liberty Times’ (the ‘Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) staff reporter Jennifer Huang that a bigger outbreak may occur later this year if the strain spreads via migratory birds flying south for winter

However, the biggest question centers on the country’s decisionmakers and whether they can efficiently implement preventatives mechanisms and mobilize resources.